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Thursday, March 7, 2013

Bonds of Mercy

Scriptural/Transhumanist Speculations on the Universe Part 6

Of the state of the gods are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.

An atom is quite a complex thing, as you may have picked up from a little exposure to chemistry or quantum mechanics. Neutrons, protons, and electrons are a level down, with a variety of even smaller entities comprising and organizing these "larger" building blocks. At the same time, an atom doesn't do much by itself. Bond the atom into larger molecules, and more complex behaviors emerge. Even with only one added level of interactions the possibilities increase exponentially. The atom stays an atom, recognizable as itself, but it is also one with a larger molecule. It is so integral to that molecule that we can give the molecule its own name and know that the atom is there without specifically naming it. Molecules can be joined into superstructures and dynamic networks that we give names, like molecular machines, cells, or Jonathan. Bonding is the first step making this possible.

Mercy and Atonement

In reading Who Shall Ascend (pp. 959-962) there is a theme that is rather striking in the scriptural passages tied to this Beatitude and to the concept of mercy. Without giving the commentary explaining why these passages are so closely tied to mercy, I will list the passages so that you can read them: Psalm 98:1-13, Psalm 119:7, Doctrine and Covenants 121:45-46, Doctrine and Covenants 88:40. The theme is that mercy is a key factor in binding things together, or the at-one aspect of atonement. Perhaps these ties might be called bonds of mercy, or as C. Terry Warner called them in the title of his book, Bonds That Make Us Free. Somehow, as a merciful god one will have "an everlasting dominion and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever." In what kind of universe does God benefit reproductively by showing mercy to other beings that have hurt or disobeyed Him in the past? It goes farther than that. God binds Himself through mercy--not some other means--to these independent, self-willed beings to the point of becoming one with them. Bonds of mercy = everlasting, ever-increasing dominion. More food for thought in exploring the cosmos of evolved gods.